Creating and financing political parties can ambush developmental state – Amissah-Arthur

The Vice-President, Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has said the creation and financing of political parties have the tendency to ambush the developmental state.

Speaking during a High Level Panel at a one-day symposium organized by the Meles Zenawi Foundation in Kigali, Rwanda Friday August 21, 2015, Mr. Amissah-Arthur argued that a developmental state is creating the political state to serve the long term interest of the people and it is without the special interest or donor interest.

According to him, Ghana is more of a democratic state than a developmental one.

“I see the role of politicians as creating the space to pursue the long term interest of the people,” he said.

However, he added that creating and financing political parties can ambush the developmental state.

The Symposium, which focused on new ideas in achieving Africa’s transformation was under the theme; “The African Democratic Developmental State”.

It was organized in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the government of Rwanda.

In response to a question on social exclusion and marginalization, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Hailemariam Desalegn noted that the democratic developmental state needs to have institutional systems. Arguing further, he said, when the market failed in the developed world (referring to the financial crisis of 2008 which started in the US), they gave public money from the banks to the companies, adding that there are countries where the market works without the government.

Responding to the same question on social exclusion and marginalization, Mr. Amissah-Arthur stated that economic policies of some countries are not neutral in terms of the people it affects.

He then cited an example in Ghana on how exchange rate over-valuation helped cocoa farmers and communities but destroyed rice farms in the north and fishing communities.

He advised African countries not to make exchange rate reforms permanent.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi, back from Kigali, Rwanda